Those who live in Minnesota likely know that many more weeks remain until they can say goodbye to winter weather for another year. Winter weather can mean treacherous driving, auto accidents and injuries, and not every driver knows how to remain safe. In fact, some drivers seem to ignore the most basic safety rules of navigating the snow and ice.
Ideally, everyone can remain home and off the roads when the weather turns bad. Of course, this is not always possible, but knowing what to do before trouble strikes may prevent catastrophic accidents and injuries. Some safety tips for driving on icy or slick roads include the following:
- Avoid slamming on the brakes.
- Take routes that do not have steep hills and sharp curves.
- Turn the wheel gently in the direction of the slide.
- Avoid overcorrecting when sliding.
- Remain alert for other vehicles that may be sliding out of control.
- Slow down to well below 45 mph
Fishtailing is a sign that a driver is going too fast. Unfortunately, not every driver will notice this and other signs or adhere to these rules. Some drivers are recklessly overconfident in their driving skills on ice or place too much faith in the ability of their vehicles. Hundreds of thousands of people suffer injuries each year in auto accidents in the snow and ice. When a vehicle slides out of control, there may be little other drivers can do to protect themselves from a collision.
